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| I'm on my 3rd yoga class today (and really enjoying it so far). I bought my own sticky mat, but I seem to have a problem with slipping around. My palms get sweaty, and it's hard to keep them planted on the mat. Is this a normal thing? My mat is brand new, will it get better once it's broken in? Is there anything that can help this? |
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| It's very normal, I struggled for years before finding a mat that I really liked (and now that mat is falling apart, so back to the drawing board). The one I liked was natural rubber, it didn't seem to have that slippery coating that so many of the popular mats have. I also liked the mats produced by Bheka (www.bheka.com), I tried a friend's and that's the one I may purchase next.
Others swear by using a cloth mat instead of a sticky one, in fact there is a very interesting practice in this month's Yoga Journal that advocates using a blanket on a slippery floor! I don't know of many people who have tried the yoga paws, or chalk.
Ultimately it will come down to experimentation, and eventually you'll settle upon the right mat for you. In the meantime, keep a towel handy and keep wiping off those sweaty hands! |
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| You can get rid of the sticky residue by wiping it down with some tea tree oil and water, or something similar.
I think as you get better at yoga you slip a lot less as you are more rooted in poses, for example in downward dog your hands are strength recieving as are your feet.
Edited by DownwardDog 2005-11-17 3:32 PM
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| Kathrynne, some of us tend to be a bit more sweaty than others, but slipping and sliding can be avoided by proper technique. First try to put as much surface of your hands onto the mat as possible, spread your fingers, try every trick. Secondly you could maybe try to use this chaulky powder rock climbers and athletes use. I haven't tried it myself but I guess it should work.
Finally, like DD wrote, give your mat a good rub with water or just give it a go in the washing machine (cold, without detergents). That should help breaking it in (getting rid of production residues).
Before I forget: WELCOME TO THE FORUMS! HAVE FUN!
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
    
| When I first looked at your post, Kathrynne, I thought you meant you were on your third class OF the day!  We did have a member here some time ago who would do that, but she was an Extreme Yogi  Yes - wash your mat. That will help. Root your hands and feet. That will help, too. YogaDancer (above mentioned yoga freak) would just say "Aw, sweat on it and don't wash it!"  That apparently works as well  |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State | I have that problem. Keep a hand towel around and wipe hands and mat occasionally.
Also consider using a towel or mysore rug on or instead of a sticky mat. A wet sticky mat
is worthless. |
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| It also depends on which kind of yoga you're doing, Kathrynne. If you're into Bikram, you'll just have to live with the sweat since it's the name of the game there. The same is to say about every other form of hot yoga and for ashtanga (vinyasa) yogas as well.
If you're into static yoga (anusara, iyengar) an appropriate mat and propper alignment should help.
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| Ah, thanks for all the replies! I have the most trouble doing downward dog, but probably because my technique isn't all that hot. I'll try to spread my hands out and work on getting it a bit better. If that doesn't work, maybe I'll ask for one of the natural mats they sell at the store here at yoga.com.  |
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Sweaty Hands!
